Gaza Freedom March Attacked by Egyptian Riot Police

Posted on Dec 29, 2009 Posted by Eric Ribellarsi

"Recently, almost 1400 people from around the globe met in Cairo to march into Gaza to join Gazans in solidarity and to help expose their plight after years of blockade and exactly a year after the violent attack in what Israel called "Operation Cast Lead" that killed hundreds of innocent Gazan civilians. So far the Marchers have been denied access (Egypt closed the Rafah crossing) and their gatherings have become increasingly and more violently suppressed."

Thanks to Bart for forwarding this to us! Originally posted at Cindy's Soapbox.

BREAKING: U.S. Citizens attacked by Egyptian Riot Police in Cairo outside of U.S. Embassy

by Cindy Sheehan

One of my friends, Joshua Smith, just texted me from Cairo and said that some U.S. citizens of the Gaza Freedom March went to the U.S. Embassy today there to try and implore the staff there to intercede on behalf of the March to help get them into Gaza--they were not so warmly welcomed.

Recently, almost 1400 people from around the globe met in Cairo to march into Gaza to join Gazans in solidarity and to help expose their plight after years of blockade and exactly a year after the violent attack in what Israel called "Operation Cast Lead" that killed hundreds of innocent Gazan civilians. So far the Marchers have been denied access (Egypt closed the Rafah crossing) and their gatherings have become increasingly and more violently suppressed.

In my understanding of world affairs, embassies are stationed in various countries so citizens who are traveling can seek help in times of trouble, but this doesn’t appear to be so right at this moment in Cairo.

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Naxalite Documentary Airs Today

Posted on Dec 25, 2009 Posted by decolonize

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Spotted at Ernesto Aguilar's blog. Houston airing of this documentary is today at 4 p.m. on 90.1 KPFT.

Community radio stations across the United States and internationally are expected to share a remarkable documentary today on India’s Naxalite insurgency, told from the perspective of that South Asian country’s most oppressed people.

Free Speech Radio News, renowned for its investigative reporting, hosts a weekday news program, featuring independent journalists from around the world. On Dec. 25, it is broadcasting to its affiliates “Maoist India: The Search for Economic Justice,” a half-hour special on the Naxal movement. Check the list of stations broadcasting the Naxalite documentary to find where it’s playing in your area, or listen on FSRN’s website.

At a time when criticism of Operation Green Hunt is growing, and on a day when many people are home and able to listen to the radio, this documentary is one of the most important openings to educate the general public about the abuses India’s poorest face, and their organizing for revolutionary change. This program is as harrowing as it is enraging. The voices of people tortured and raped by Indian police, farmers battling for their very survival and Naxalites who stand to defend them are all a part of the program. Their stories are at points sorrowful. Their determination in many instances is inspiring. This is a program everyone should hear.

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Announcing Our First Public Meeting

Posted on Dec 24, 2009 Posted by Eric Ribellarsi

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It has been nearly four months since the formation of our collective. In this time, we have committed ourselves to contributing to rethinking communist politics, and experimenting with new forms of radical practice. We have tried to remain humble, and acknowledge that we are but one collective contributing to a much larger process. Our collective has grown, as has our collectivity.

Thus far, our collective has functioned in a way that has been highly informal. However, we have begun to take on more practice and engage in more theoretical work. And at this point, it is necessary that we find forms to give expression to our collectivity, our undogmatic approach to theory, and our desire to launch and join others in radical practice.

For this reason, we would like to begin holding public meetings which can both discuss the work we are all doing in a more systematic way, to create a space for us as a collective to listen and learn from others, and to help others who are interested in getting involved with us to find ways to do that.

We would like to meet up at Bohemeo's (708 Telephone Rd) on January 3rd at 1PM. We invite all of our sisters and brothers to come! :)

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Avatar: Condescending Racism or a Story of Transformation and Struggle?

Posted on Dec 21, 2009 Posted by Eric Ribellarsi

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by Eric Ribellarsi

A debate has recently broken out about the new science fiction film "Avatar." A popular review appeared on io9 by Annalee Newitz titled When Will White People Stop Making Movies Like Avatar? I'd like to try to respond to some of the points in that review and give a different view that defends that movie.

I have to strongly disagree with Annalee Newitz's review.

Annalee Newitz wrote:

"Jake is so enchanted that he gives up on carrying out his mission, which is to persuade the Na'vi to relocate from their "home tree," where the humans want to mine the unobtanium. Instead, he focuses on becoming a great warrior who rides giant birds and falls in love with the chief's daughter. When the inevitable happens and the marines arrive to burn down the Na'vi's home tree, Jake switches sides. With the help of a few human renegades, he maintains a link with his avatar body in order to lead the Na'vi against the human invaders. Not only has he been assimilated into the native people's culture, but he has become their leader."

This review misses key aspects of the story, and even distorts the storyline of the movie to make it fit into a rather dogmatic framework. I found the movie to be a nuanced and beautiful film that told the story of an elitist white soldier for imperialism who goes to exploit and oppress an indigenous nation of aliens (the Na’vi), but is instead transformed by them and won to take up armed struggle against imperialism along side them.

I will point out that this is not a story about a white man who goes to lead native people’s as their condescending savior, as it is characterized in the review referenced here. It’s a story about a backward white man who is transformed by the Na'vi, much in the way that Dr. Bethune, an arrogant, elitist, white “communist” was transformed by the Chinese people through the course of the revolution in China. Dr. Bethune was able only to become a communist himself when he was struggled with by China's oppressed masses, and taught to listen and learn from the Chinese people, and became a servant of them. In Avatar, Jake Sully finds himself in a situation where ignorant and arrogant colonist after colonist is exposed for the fools that they are, and unable to infiltrate the Na'vi. Jake is no different, but the Na'vi decide that they will see if he can be changed.

Factually, it is not true that Jake Sully becomes the leader of the indigenous aliens (as this review has stated). In fact, after the death of the chief in the movie, the new chief is the most radical of the Na’vi who wants to fight the imperialist invaders, Jake is second to this more revolutionary Na’vi, and actually asks for permission to speak from his more radical leader.

The way the movie deals with indigenous culture is not the insulting and racist way that this review has characterized it, but rather one in which Jake is first arrogant and elitist to this culture, but instead comes to understand it’s complexity and nuance. The Na’vi’s culture is shown in much more sophistication than the insulting vulgarizations that are normally given to the Native peoples in Western media, especially in terms of the way that these peoples related to the world around them and never viewed it as a commodity to be exploited but a world to contribute to.

But I would like to go back to what seems to be a central thesis of Annalee Newitz’s review:

“Whites need to stop remaking the white guilt story, which is a sneaky way of turning every story about people of color into a story about being white.”

Surely it is true that we need more films from the perspective of the oppressed themselves. There is no question about that. But why make a dogmatic absolute of that? Would it be wrong to make a film about the story of John Brown, a white man who sacrificed his life to side with the Black liberation struggle? What about movies like “Sir! No Sir!” which tell the stories of American GI’s in Vietnam who turned their backs on US imperialism and resisted, many of them even committing mutiny? Isn’t that a story worth telling?

Annalee Newitz said:

“When will white people stop making movies like Avatar?”

Here is where I have my differences with identity politics (and in this instance, a very dogmatic application of identity politics). Do white people really need to stop making movies like this? I think white people need to confront what they are a part of, and be transformed to side with oppressed humanity. I don’t think that is a “guilt story,” and frankly, if white people weren’t appalled by the history of slavery and genocide in the USA, wouldn’t that be more of a problem? Wouldn't it be more of a problem if there was no internationalism, and we were all starting from our own individual identities?

Yes, it is a problem that there are not enough movies which are from the perspective of the oppressed themselves. But why does that mean there is no value to films like these? Is there really no value to the stories of John Brown? of Jews in Israel who side with and defend the Palestinians? Of Germans who refused to go along in Nazi Germany? I think there is great value to those stories, and that we should be able to unite with what is positive in them, even while we do need to point out the complete absence of the perspectives of the oppressed themselves in Hollywood.

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Maobadi Form Parallel Government in Capital City

Posted on Dec 18, 2009 Posted by Eric Ribellarsi

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Nepal's Maobadi have just declared that the capital city, Kathmandu belongs to the Newar oppressed nationality and formed a parallel autonomous government inside the capital city called the "Newa Republic Province." This has set reactionary pro-imperialist forces into a frenzy. The following article is from the bourgeois press in India, attacking the Maobadi. We are reposting it for informational purposes. Thanks to Gary Leupp for forwarding the article.

Outrage: Maoists declare Kathmandu ‘free’

Casting a shadow on the Nepal peace process, Maoists today announced that capital Kathmandu would henceforth be called the autonomous ‘Newa republic province’ where the dominant Newar community would have more rights than others.

Prachanda, chief of the Unified Communist Party of Nepal-Maoists (UCPN-M), lit a candle outside the original royal palace to make the declaration of the ‘Newa republic province’, a move other political parties condemned as the “most retrograde step”.

It was seen to be symbolically challenging the political unification of Nepal by King Prithvi Narayan Shah who conquered the Kathmandu Valley in 1768 by defeating its Newar rulers.

Maoists have so far declared half-a-dozen “autonomous republic provinces”, ignoring warnings that such moves could lead to fragmentation of the country.

Prachanda said the Newar community would enjoy “special powers” and “in due course of time, all communities will enjoy equal rights”. He raised the ‘Newa Rajya Zindabad’ slogan three times.

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Naxalites Abolish Exploitative Loans

Posted on Dec 16, 2009 Posted by Eric Ribellarsi

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The following article discusses the Communist Party of India (Maoist)'s announcement that all exploitative and predatory will be abolished in the areas they have liberated. The article comes from the bourgeois press and is written from a distorted and pro-imperialist perspective, but we are posting it for informational purposes. Special thanks to Jed Brandt for this.

Farmers in West Midnapore district of West Bengal may not have to repay their crop loans. The Maoists have announced a waiver. This is the first time the rebel group has announced such a decision.

“Several peasants who took crop loans over the last two years have suffered losses. So, we have decided that they don’t have to pay back their loans,” said Koteshwar Rao, alias Kishenji, member of the banned Communist Party of India (Maoist).

“Moreover, no agricultural cooperative, bank or private money lender will be allowed to charge more than two per cent interest on loans they advance to peasants this year,” he added.

Cooperative and public sector banks usually charge 7 per cent interest on agri loans. Private moneylenders charge much more – between 3 per cent and 5 per cent a month.

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Maobadi Declare 6 Parallel Autonomous Governments

Posted on Dec 14, 2009 Posted by Eric Ribellarsi

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As general strikes and riots continue throughout the Nepal, the Maobadi have declared 6 autonomous parallel governments throughout the country with more autonomous governments on the way in opposition to the oppression of Nepal's oppressed nationalities. Various U.S.-backed political forces inside the Nepal government have declared this to be an act of war, and are threatening war on the Maobadi and the oppressed nationalities of Nepal. The following article was originally posted on 'nepalnews.com'.

Unified CPN (Maoist) declared two more states on Monday, taking the count of ethnicity and region based autonomous states to six.

Maoist chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal declared Sherpa autonomous state amid a special ceremony organized in Solukhombu today afternoon.

Similarly, Maoist politburo member Gopal Kirati inaugurated the temporary head-quarter of Kirant autonomous state in Diktel of Taplejung today, endorsing a declaration for Kirat autonomous states made by the party about a month ago.

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Protest: Stop the Raids Now!

Posted on Dec 14, 2009 Posted by Eric Ribellarsi

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Thanks to SDS at the University of Houston for this flier!

On the International Day of the Migrant, December 18th at 10AM, join us in demanding:

Stop the raids now!

Worldwide more than one hundred million people have left their country of birth to seek work and livelihood in another country. International Migrants Day is a time to mark the struggles and contributions that migrants make to our society. On December 2nd, immigration authorities raided 2 Mambo's restaurants, and have detained 30 immigrant workers. December 18th we will protest the raids and support the rights and dignity of immigrants with a protest at the Houston Processing Center, and immigrant detention prison at 5520 Greens Road.

Endorsed by Student for a Democratic Society, Raza Justive Movement, International Action Center, CRECEN/America Para Tod@s, Doscentavos.net

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